Nerite snails are a great addition to any planted aquarium. I have 4 of them in my 55 gallon and I swear they are faster then I thought they could be. I see them in one spot then look away for a couple minutes and they are all the way across the tank lol. Great video
awesome video ♡ i had a zebra in my goldie setup for a while, great little snail. i now have 6 horned nerites in my betta setups that are absolutely adorable ☺
thanks for the info! i'm gonna be stocking a 40 gallon and i'm trying to find some decent algae eaters because the tank has a huge algae problem and a cleanup crew should help a bit.
@K | That is most likely normal, because they aren't adjusted to their surroundings yet. Mine did the same thing, and eventually were happy after a day or so. :)
i have something to add. put them in your tank trapdoor side down, and if you ever notice that they have fallen onto their backs you will need to flip them back over if they don't right themselves within a reasonable amount of time. iv'e found that landing on their backs is one of the top killers of this snail. that's a very common cause of death for many saltwater snails but not too common with freshwater snails. nerites are brackish snails that do great in fresh, but also seem to suffer from this fatal flaw that their saltwater brethren suffer from.
Good point. I watch them for a while after putting them in, to make sure they get a good foothold, I should have mentioned that, thanks for bringing it up! 👍
I didn't know about these snails, but my tank was being taken over by algae, I instinctively bought 2 of these guys today for the tank, but my tank is around 3 1/2 gallons, so once the algae is gone from that tank, I will put one or both into my 35 gallon tank!
Just got a few today, there was a hitchhiker on one of them haha looks like a baby mystery or Inca snail but it loves to hitch a ride from one of them haha
I love Nerites, I have quite some species, my favorite has to be the Horn Nerites, the Red Onion Nerites, and the Zebra Nerites. They are so cool and I put them in my 45 Gallon community fish tank, and they do very well with my fish! I have 1 question. What other things can I feed my Nerites other than veggies or plants?
Aquarimax Pets yeah! and something super interesting that happened was about 2 years ago or so she suddenly went through a “growth spurt” and she ended up with like a half inch of new shell growth within maybe 6 or 8 months. You can see the line where the old shell ends and the new growth began.
Joshua Werner I suggest ramshorns or mystery snails if you want something that can breed in your aquarium. Ramshorns are easier, mystery snails take a little more effort.
I often do it by hand, after some temperature acclimation. I made sure their foot can grip the substrate or a solid surface. If they end up on their backs, they often cannot right themselves and will die,
In my tank, I have snails, plecos, a betta, some shrimp (although i think they died except for 1), harlequin rasboras, and neon tetras. Its one lively tank if I do say so myself!
How long would you estimate it takes for nerite snail eggs to disappear? I asked for a mystery snail and was given a nerite. Mystery snails not laying eggs in the same way that nerites do is the whole reason I wanted a mystery snail instead so I'm hoping it's a male but I want to be prepared.
Okay it will sound like a weird question but somebody tell me why my snail don't get his head out ? I mean I don't see any "antenna" just his mouth. Well I don't know how to explain but I ask anyway
Novel 'ᄉ' sometimes when the snail is reacting to stress, which can be due to water quality issues or other irritation (such as nibbling from a fish) the snail will not emerge fully from its shell.
I have a 5.5gallon with a Betta, when I put my nerite zebra in , the first couple days the Betta would harrass the snail,after that he left the snail alone & they now live peacefully.I do have plants & places for the zebra to hide in ,but Betta leaves him alone now.
Concert Travels with Happyheartslee It is possible that the babies are another species. Did you ever see the white, eggs that look a bit like sesame seeds on the glass?
What’s a way to help prevent them from escaping the tank? And are these guys safe for fish eggs and fry? I have free swimming fry but plan to breed the parents more in the future. Are these guys safe for that whole process? They are Polar Blue Parot Cichlids. I need some help keeping this fry tank clean with all these feedings. Whatcha think?
I buying 3 of these tomorrow one for each of my 3 tanks my 2 five gallon have betta in each and my ten gallon has neon tetras in I really hope my betta is not aggressive to the snail if so I will just put the snails in my ten gallon tank I have real plants in my tanks the algae on the leaves is so much a pain to get rid of
I got three Nerites from a local aquarium store; I now have an abundance of baby snails all over the tank and two of my big ones passed away. I'm not sure if I actually got Nerites at this point, because now I'm hearing they have a hard time reproducing and it seems that some are eating my new Java Fern.
Gail Angelica I have seen that on occasion...it may not be an issue, but it could be responding to something irritating it, such as fish, or perhaps something in the water..
Thanks for your reply. I just remember, I dosed my tank with a dewormer about a month ago because of hydra. I took my snail out and put it in a clean tank. I hope it gets better in a few days. *crossing my fingers*
Fran DeGroat If he is making a lot of poop, that is a good sign he’s eating a good amount. Is the glass spotlessly clean, or can you see little chew marks in the algae?
Fran DeGroat You can try offering half of a frozen/thawed pea. If your nerite eats it, you can offer one once a week or so to help make sure it gets enough to eat.
Small snails a quarter of my finger nail size have appeared in my tropical freshwater tank...where did they come from and how do i get rid of them. They have flat shells
@@Aquarimax no it's literally like a disc like shell with the normal spiral on it. Except the shell is flat instead of facing upwards idk where they came from. I noticed 1 now i notice 4. They are very small half the size of a gravel
hey, could you elaborate more about the calcium. i just bought a nerite snail for my 2.5 gal betta tank today. i dont have much for him yet, no food or supplements yet. how crucial is the calcium, and what are some easy ways to feed him calcium?
bomberbang good question! It depends on the mineral content of your water. If your water is hard, you may not need to supplement calcium beyond regular partial water changes. If your water is softer, you will need to add it--cuttlebone sold for parakeets and other pet birds is a good source of calcium. Break off a small piece and let it float in the tank--it will eventually sink. Calcium is crucial for healthy shell development and maintenance. Without enough, the shell will begin to dissolve...leading to pitting.
Greyson Creates it is hard to say by pH alone, because alkalinity and hardness don’t always coincide, but they often do. Your water is likely hard enough, but offering a bit of cuttlebone or buffering substrate would be a good idea.
crazy shrimp lady I just looked those up...beautiful patterning on their shells! Apparently they are just as good at eating algae as the nerites we get here. 👍
Mac Cano Some inactivity is ok for short periods, but if it persists it usually means there is an issue...could be a fish bothering it, or an irritant in the water.
I just got one today i was wondering if you could tell if it's normal for them to stay in their shell once added into a new aquarium I got mine a couple of hours ago and was wondering
Xavier Madera it can be normal for a while as they adjust to conditions, but more than a few hours and something may be wrong. Make sure the opening of the shell is facing the substrate so that the snail can easily grip it. If the opening faces up into the water the snail may get stuck there and eventually die.
Many nerites sold in the hobby can be acclimated to full marine salinity, but some are basically freshwater snails. According to Wet Web Media, there are two commonly sold ‘zebra nerites’, one of which is naturally brackish (so it could likely,be acclimated to full marine strength) and another which is a freshwater species from South Africa.
Great, thank you!! I'm adjusting my zebra nerite now. I'm preparing my 5 gallon tank for opae ula. My salinity measures right below 1.014 on a Fluval Sea hydrometer, is this a good level? Thank you for always replying - I love your channel.
Eren Yeager eventually, but they can spend a while outside of the water before they die. The ones in my goldfish tank sometimes climb into the underside of the glass cover in search of algae, and will sometimes stay there for a couple of hours or so.
Do nerites clean algae better than apple snails do? I need something to clean the glass of my aquarium that's not a fish (I have a betta so a fish wouldn't be so good) and my apple snail seems to provide more waste than help cleaning the tank.
JustLem algae wafers differ from one brand to another. If there is quality brand with a lot of algae in it, that might work, but I suspect the nerites would do better with some live algae to graze on.
JustLem That brand has several types of algae in it, although it has other main ingredients. The first step is to see if your nerite would actually eat it.
Can i add this snail to a turtle tank? Althugh would it be reccomended since my turtle has only ever been by himself so would he try to eat the snail??
when I bought my nerite snail I was told they can live in cold water aquariums and they have however you didn't mention this. should I put them in freshwater instead?
Onfroi some fish will nibble at the eggs. I have never kept gouramies or angelfish specifically with nerites, but i hear Corydoras catfish will eat them, for example. 👍
as pretty as they are, i advise against nerites and wouldnt buy them myself. (i'm not hating on- or trying to debunk this video. it's good information and well made!) it really bugs me too see any critter primarily "advertised" as algae eaters or glass cleaners, (suggesting you dont have to, if you dont know better), but with little regard to theyr natural habitat. nerites are adapted to brutal flow, grazing on algae covered rocks right in the rapids of a stream, where most critters cant get to them. - they dont reproduce unwantedly, because they havent been captive bred sucessfully, which means they are all wild caught, and the problems associated with that. - the devour actual film algae .. but that means they often starve to death when recommended to beginners with typical "cycling phase algae" (usually green brush and hair), because the snails doesnt like them. - and frustrating to the new hobbyists, because they dont keep his glass spotless, like the guy in the store promised.
Cuda FX All good points to consider! 👍I do have to switch between my tanks occasionally to make sure they get enough algae, and for a beginner with just one tank, that wouldn’t work very well, and could end up with a starving nerite.
Emily LovesHorses Depending on lighting, bioload, etc, two nerites could do well in a 6.6, as long as there is enough algae to eat. Honestly, I keep 2 or 3 in a tank ten times that big, and they take care of most of the algae, but you might have more light than I do and they could be fine. You could quarantine them in a small container like that, but you will have to change the water daily most likely, (which should be easy) ...just make sure they get enough to eat during quarantine. 👍
Erin Kroef Usually, yes. Guppies will sometimes pick at snails though. Corydpras catfish are usually fine with them. Some loaches (not actually catfish of course) will eat snails.
Nerites are so cool in my opinion. Im planning on getting two for my ten gal planted setup but do these snails escape if there's no lid on the tank? I have heard some people lost their nerites due to them escaping and drying out
I have two tiger nerites that are sluggish of late (no pun intended), I found both of them upturned in the tank today (alive) but I feel there's something up with them. There is always a bit of algae on at least one side of the tank and I top up their feed once a week to ensure nutrient levels are being met. The tank is cleaned twice a week at the moment because I was battling with higher ammonia levels but I replace my entire filtration system and gravel clean twice a week. This should be sorted as we are talking two months of this treatment. Any ideas would be great.
Hi there. I have 1 zebra Nerite snail in a less than 3 gallon tank with 4 enders, 4 marimo moss ball and sand substrate. I have tried feeding my Nerite with cabbage but it does not eat and I have also dropped off the idea of algae wafers as they contain trace amount of copper. May I check can I feed my Nerite with spinach leaf or snail jello bought from aquarium store?
I have a 5 gal with a betta with no lid... Should I get a lid before getting me snail? Also I have pool filtered sand will the 🐌 be okay? :/ Thanks! Hopefully I get a male snail @.@“
Alex Po If your betta is not aggressive towards them, it could work (some bettas ignore snails, a few will kill them). If you want to try it, I would suggest only one at first, to see how the betta does, and to make see how much algae the first nerite takes care of. 👍
Vickor Gunandar I have seen veligers (larvae) in at least one of my brackish water tanks, and I think I actually have a small metamorphosed nerite that hatched in one of my brackish tanks. I am waiting to catch sight of it again...it is very small, and there is a lot of rockwork in there. If I catch it on film, I will post a video about it on this channel! 👍
timeout0000 I have seen white patches on nerite shells before, it may indicate the nerite has been kept in water that is too soft and acid. If that is the issue in this case, as long as you keep it in hard, alkaline water, especially with some cuttlebone or aragonite sand, it should be ok.
Mine are brown and have one bluish white stripe down their shells. The weird thing is that they breed ALL of the time but only grow to a certain size (about 1/2 cm) and then die, though I never run out of them. They eat brown algae and algae wafers but never eat the leaves on my plants. Are they nerites?
Rebecca Coors I have seen some evidence that nerites can get stuck on their backs. I don’t know if they always get stuck, but in think it does happen sometimes. I try to make sure to flip over any nerites I see on their backs. 👍
nathan hunt Just one shell should be enough, depending on the size of your setup and number of nerites. A shell might increase the hardness of the water too much in some situations, though.
I have 2 nerites, both went inside the operculum, the nitates were a little high not too much... after the water change and checking the parameters ... the water is a little acidic, I added cuttle bone... the bigger started moving and is ok but the smaller has been 4 days inside the operculum... no foul smell... should I keep it inside the tank or out in a cup with water. The operculum is tight closed and it had a whitish slimy substans in the edges... but no foul smell. Help
@@Aquarimax 🐌 :'( I put Felix in a small tupper with shallow water. He or she still smells like aquarium water so I still have some hope... little hope
a untaken name If I understand your question correctly, you don’t need to swap out the shells. They grow along with the nerites and the nerites can never leave them unless they die.
Recently all of my snails claimed up into their shells for many days, and eventually died. I had recently added some meds for my fish so I thought it might have been the copper levels, but I did several water changes, tested the water and bought new snails and they did the exact same thing. Any idea what could be going on with this?
This is generally some irritant in the water, so you seem to be on the right track. The meds may have caused problems with the bacterial population, causing more ammonia in the water, or the snails may still be reacting to small traces of the meds in the water.
Cute fish A quick search confirms that there are various closely related species spread out in many areas of the world. Some are natives of the Caribbean, others to Southern Africa, etc...
I feed mine tomatoes, garlic, apples, they love cucumbers and cantaloupes too as long as it’s not too sugary just make sure if you give them tomatoes get all the seeds out , I kid you not I have tomatoe sprouts growing in my tank , don’t know if they will live long
@@dr.ottooctavius1810 is there any special prep or do you just throw them in? I have 5 nerites in a 10 gallon atm since their 29 gallon needed to be reset. Im currently permanently blue led it atm for moss growth. I much rather not. I havent seen them eat anything besides the glass algae
Are liquid fertilizers such as flourish excel harmful to snails? What about root tabs? In the past when I used liquid fertilizer such as flourish excel they seem to stop moving completely, eventually after water changes they get active again. Please let me know if the liquid or root tabs are safe?
Stop Trolling At the recommended dosage, I have never had trouble with flourish excel bothering snails...I have probably used it with six R more snail species. However, it is possible that some species are more sensitive than others. As for root tabs, I have generally used Jobe's palm spikes, and haven't had any problems with those harming snails either...which species of snails do the fertilizers seem to bother?
Petro Gonzalo These are challenging to breed...the eggs need seawater or brackish water to hatch, and lots of algae to grow and mature. I have never tired to breed them, though they have hatched for me in a brackish tank, and I had one that began to mature...but has since disappeared.
mine immeadiately shut their door after 5 minutes, once i transfer them to my reserved water, they are moving around. please help! I'm losing sleep over these little snails
Gwynnthiere There are a lot of colors /patterns of nerites out there; most have similar care needs, I believe the main differences in care are in temperature tolerances and salinity requirements. If the black nerites are sold in a pet store and acclimated to your local water, their care needs should be the same. 👍
Thank you :) I wanted zebras but they didn't have any and convinced me to buy black ones instead. They seem the same, and she said they're kept in the same sale tank as the zebras. (These are perhaps the cutest snail I have seen I love their little mouths!)
Savage Charles if there are water quality issues, they will sometimes do that. Otherwise they tend to stay in, but a cover is a good idea just in case.
galaxy star thanks! If you are only keeping nerites, you can run the light that long, but you may find it encourages too much algae growth. Usually, there is sufficient algae with 10-12 hours of light. Generally I wouldn't recommend putting the nerites in the tank until you see algae growing on the glass.
Loved this video-you convinced me to get 2 for my 5 gallon tank. (With one betta fish) So far they have done great!
I guess I'm kind of randomly asking but do anybody know a good place to watch newly released tv shows online ?
@Jerome Benedict Flixportal
@Jude Jad thank you, signed up and it seems like a nice service :D Appreciate it !!
@Jerome Benedict no problem =)
I have the same tank and one betta how do you feed your snails and make sure that betta doesn’t eat there food
Thanks
Nerite snails are a great addition to any planted aquarium. I have 4 of them in my 55 gallon and I swear they are faster then I thought they could be. I see them in one spot then look away for a couple minutes and they are all the way across the tank lol. Great video
Mike Ferguson they are pretty fast for a snail, true! Thank you 😊👍
Good information. I love nerite snails. I have several in all my tanks.
They are great snails, aren't they!
I have discovered Nerites are great at cleaning my plant leaves of algae. .... when one happens to find the leaves! Thank you for this video
It can be hit or miss, but like you said, once they find it...😁👍
Planning on getting one of these little buggers today for my 20 gallon aquarium. Thanks for the info!
Ellie Letourneau You're very welcome!
0:40 - 0:43 " if no algae is available, they will nibble on skin-" I was like 😳 until he said SKINNED frozen peas 😂
😳😂🤣👍
I did exactly the same thing! Haha
Wow, these are very interesting, I have never seen them before. Thanks for uploading.
Thanks Shane, I wonder if they are available in your area?
awesome video ♡ i had a zebra in my goldie setup for a while, great little snail. i now have 6 horned nerites in my betta setups that are absolutely adorable ☺
I have a zebra with my goldfish too😀. I've never had a horned nerite, I would like to try that species,
been thinking about getting Racer nerites. I think the racers are most attractive of their kind.
My fish love their eggs. They are very similar to the eggs my corydoras lay on the glass occasionally.
thanks for the info! i'm gonna be stocking a 40 gallon and i'm trying to find some decent algae eaters because the tank has a huge algae problem and a cleanup crew should help a bit.
HT Herps you're welcome! A few of these ought to help clear things up 👍
@K | That is most likely normal, because they aren't adjusted to their surroundings yet. Mine did the same thing, and eventually were happy after a day or so. :)
i have something to add.
put them in your tank trapdoor side down, and if you ever notice that they have fallen onto their backs you will need to flip them back over if they don't right themselves within a reasonable amount of time. iv'e found that landing on their backs is one of the top killers of this snail. that's a very common cause of death for many saltwater snails but not too common with freshwater snails. nerites are brackish snails that do great in fresh, but also seem to suffer from this fatal flaw that their saltwater brethren suffer from.
Good point. I watch them for a while after putting them in, to make sure they get a good foothold, I should have mentioned that, thanks for bringing it up! 👍
Aquarimax ;)
Yes, you are supposed to put them all the way down, right side up at the bottom of the tank, rather than letting them float to the bottom
good informative video
i have a 2.6 gallon planted tank with one tiger nerite, what would be the best way of cleaning the poop?
Thanks! In your case I would recommend a small gravel washer. They are inexpensive, simple, and effective.
Thanks for le guide. This is easy to digest.
Nehemz Glad to hear it, that is exactly what I was hoping for 👍
Great video 🐌👍
I didn't know about these snails, but my tank was being taken over by algae, I instinctively bought 2 of these guys today for the tank, but my tank is around 3 1/2 gallons, so once the algae is gone from that tank, I will put one or both into my 35 gallon tank!
Hey It’s Charlie putting them into a larger tank once they have removed most of the algae is a good plan 👍
@@Aquarimax good to know thank you!
Just got a few today, there was a hitchhiker on one of them haha looks like a baby mystery or Inca snail but it loves to hitch a ride from one of them haha
Twiggafinga It will be interesting to see what it turns out to be! Bonus critters can be fun 😊👍
I love Nerites, I have quite some species, my favorite has to be the Horn Nerites, the Red Onion Nerites, and the Zebra Nerites. They are so cool and I put them in my 45 Gallon community fish tank, and they do very well with my fish!
I have 1 question. What other things can I feed my Nerites other than veggies or plants?
Very helpful info, thanks!
hawkrider88 Thank you for watching!
Good info. I might get some
Thanks! If you get one, let me know what you think!
My olive nerite is 6 years old 😃.I also have some Amano shrimp that are 6 years old.
Krista2882 Good signs you are providing great care!
Aquarimax Pets yeah! and something super interesting that happened was about 2 years ago or so she suddenly went through a “growth spurt” and she ended up with like a half inch of new shell growth within maybe 6 or 8 months. You can see the line where the old shell ends and the new growth began.
i was looking for something that would breed in my tank and i get the ome kind of snail that cant.
Joshua Werner I suggest ramshorns or mystery snails if you want something that can breed in your aquarium. Ramshorns are easier, mystery snails take a little more effort.
Hi, great video. What is the best way to introduce them into my aquarium?
I often do it by hand, after some temperature acclimation. I made sure their foot can grip the substrate or a solid surface. If they end up on their backs, they often cannot right themselves and will die,
In my tank, I have snails, plecos, a betta, some shrimp (although i think they died except for 1), harlequin rasboras, and neon tetras. Its one lively tank if I do say so myself!
Kiwi Borb definitely sounds lively and fun to watch!
Would you please post a video? Sounds like an interesting setup
@@viper28793 sure when I have the time
How long would you estimate it takes for nerite snail eggs to disappear? I asked for a mystery snail and was given a nerite. Mystery snails not laying eggs in the same way that nerites do is the whole reason I wanted a mystery snail instead so I'm hoping it's a male but I want to be prepared.
Okay it will sound like a weird question but somebody tell me why my snail don't get his head out ? I mean I don't see any "antenna" just his mouth. Well I don't know how to explain but I ask anyway
Novel 'ᄉ' sometimes when the snail is reacting to stress, which can be due to water quality issues or other irritation (such as nibbling from a fish) the snail will not emerge fully from its shell.
What was that little shrimpy guy in the beginning?
Teddy Lowe that was an opae ula, or Hawaiian Red Shrimp (Halocaridina rubra)
Hmm, I kinda want to get these, but not sure cause I will be getting a betta
Lunar Skies some bettas ignore them, others attack them....you never can tell!
I have a 5.5gallon with a Betta, when I put my nerite zebra in , the first couple days the Betta would harrass the snail,after that he left the snail alone & they now live peacefully.I do have plants & places for the zebra to hide in ,but Betta leaves him alone now.
Fran DeGroat Sometimes it works out like that, Fortunately. 👍
I got nerite snails because I have been told and read that it doesnt reproduce easily.... I had 2. Suddenly I have 5 babies!! I am worried!!
Concert Travels with Happyheartslee It is possible that the babies are another species. Did you ever see the white, eggs that look a bit like sesame seeds on the glass?
What’s a way to help prevent them from escaping the tank? And are these guys safe for fish eggs and fry? I have free swimming fry but plan to breed the parents more in the future. Are these guys safe for that whole process? They are Polar Blue Parot Cichlids. I need some help keeping this fry tank clean with all these feedings. Whatcha think?
mine is the olive one
I buying 3 of these tomorrow one for each of my 3 tanks my 2 five gallon have betta in each and my ten gallon has neon tetras in I really hope my betta is not aggressive to the snail if so I will just put the snails in my ten gallon tank I have real plants in my tanks the algae on the leaves is so much a pain to get rid of
Debbie In Manchester these should help quite a bit, they will eat algae from wide plant leaves. 😊👍
I got three Nerites from a local aquarium store; I now have an abundance of baby snails all over the tank and two of my big ones passed away.
I'm not sure if I actually got Nerites at this point, because now I'm hearing they have a hard time reproducing and it seems that some are eating my new Java Fern.
They don’t reproduce in freshwater, they need brackish or salt water
Does they eat old leaves?
My nerite stopped moving. It's been 2 days now. It's still alive, I can see it move its antenna sometimes.
Gail Angelica I have seen that on occasion...it may not be an issue, but it could be responding to something irritating it, such as fish, or perhaps something in the water..
Thanks for your reply. I just remember, I dosed my tank with a dewormer about a month ago because of hydra. I took my snail out and put it in a clean tank. I hope it gets better in a few days. *crossing my fingers*
Gail Angelica Good call! Hydra meds can sometimes irritate snails, i hope your nerite recovers quickly! 🤞
I have 1 zebra , he's a poop machine,how do I know if he's getting enough to eat ?
Fran DeGroat If he is making a lot of poop, that is a good sign he’s eating a good amount. Is the glass spotlessly clean, or can you see little chew marks in the algae?
@@Aquarimax very clean and I never clean it !
Fran DeGroat You can try offering half of a frozen/thawed pea. If your nerite eats it, you can offer one once a week or so to help make sure it gets enough to eat.
Small snails a quarter of my finger nail size have appeared in my tropical freshwater tank...where did they come from and how do i get rid of them. They have flat shells
Are they the shape of a flat volcano?
@@Aquarimax no it's literally like a disc like shell with the normal spiral on it. Except the shell is flat instead of facing upwards idk where they came from. I noticed 1 now i notice 4. They are very small half the size of a gravel
I have a question
Do black military snails eat spot green algae
I haven’t kept that species, but it seems likely considering that some of their close relatives will.
@@Aquarimax ok thanks. But these military snails also belong to the nerite family, i have just bought 1
@@sukrutnakhe2551 Yes, they are in the same genus as olive nerites, so they will likely eat green spot algae.
hey, could you elaborate more about the calcium. i just bought a nerite snail for my 2.5 gal betta tank today. i dont have much for him yet, no food or supplements yet. how crucial is the calcium, and what are some easy ways to feed him calcium?
bomberbang good question! It depends on the mineral content of your water. If your water is hard, you may not need to supplement calcium beyond regular partial water changes. If your water is softer, you will need to add it--cuttlebone sold for parakeets and other pet birds is a good source of calcium. Break off a small piece and let it float in the tank--it will eventually sink.
Calcium is crucial for healthy shell development and maintenance. Without enough, the shell will begin to dissolve...leading to pitting.
very helpful! thank you.
bomberbang You're welcome, and thanks for watching!
@@Aquarimax how do i know if my water is hard... our tap comes out at 8 - 8.2 ph, is that hard enough?
Greyson Creates it is hard to say by pH alone, because alkalinity and hardness don’t always coincide, but they often do. Your water is likely hard enough, but offering a bit of cuttlebone or buffering substrate would be a good idea.
I'm getting some Darwin Nerites, as I'm in Australia.
crazy shrimp lady I just looked those up...beautiful patterning on their shells! Apparently they are just as good at eating algae as the nerites we get here. 👍
If you don't have much algae in your tank and they don't take to algae wafers, what other kinds of vegetables can they eat?
Kenna Love I have seen them go after peas with the skins removed, and I think I have used canned green beans as well.
Mine is alive but not active is that normal
Mac Cano Some inactivity is ok for short periods, but if it persists it usually means there is an issue...could be a fish bothering it, or an irritant in the water.
Aquarimax Pets thanks
I just got one today i was wondering if you could tell if it's normal for them to stay in their shell once added into a new aquarium I got mine a couple of hours ago and was wondering
Xavier Madera it can be normal for a while as they adjust to conditions, but more than a few hours and something may be wrong. Make sure the opening of the shell is facing the substrate so that the snail can easily grip it. If the opening faces up into the water the snail may get stuck there and eventually die.
I put 4 of these in my 200 litre and they destroyed the algae in just 1 week. No more algae scraper needed 😀
think I've got an ancient nerite. it will be 6 years old later this year
Love Goldens That is great! I think I have one that is around that age as well, but many don’t last that long. 👍
@@Aquarimax yeah I've read they usually only live 1-2 years
Love Goldens Right, so 6 years is quite an accomplishment! 👍
i have one that is 6 years old as well!
Great video! What's the maximum salinity for zebra Nerite?
Many nerites sold in the hobby can be acclimated to full marine salinity, but some are basically freshwater snails. According to Wet Web Media, there are two commonly sold ‘zebra nerites’, one of which is naturally brackish (so it could likely,be acclimated to full marine strength) and another which is a freshwater species from South Africa.
Great, thank you!! I'm adjusting my zebra nerite now. I'm preparing my 5 gallon tank for opae ula. My salinity measures right below 1.014 on a Fluval Sea hydrometer, is this a good level? Thank you for always replying - I love your channel.
Caroline You’re welcome, thanks for watching!
If that is a brackish nerite, that salinity should be good, and it is great for Opae Ula as well. 👍
This is a REALLY silly question, but do you need a lid for these snails if the water level is ~1 to 2 inches under the lip of the tank?
Midnightman That is actually a good question. I recommend a lid. These snails can sometimes decide to wander out of the tank otherwise.
Wait but won't they die if they wander outside?
Eren Yeager eventually, but they can spend a while outside of the water before they die. The ones in my goldfish tank sometimes climb into the underside of the glass cover in search of algae, and will sometimes stay there for a couple of hours or so.
My racer has a number of circular rings on its shell.
Can you tell me what they are?
Do they eat anything other than algae? Are they like any other nail?
I have seen them eat thawed frozen peas and other vegetable matter as well as algae. Algae wafers too, as I recall.
Aquarimax Pets they’re super cute but wish they ate more detritus! Guess they can’t have it all :)
sunnysideup That would be a nice plus 😊👍
Do nerites clean algae better than apple snails do? I need something to clean the glass of my aquarium that's not a fish (I have a betta so a fish wouldn't be so good) and my apple snail seems to provide more waste than help cleaning the tank.
Raimer in most situations, I would say that nerites provide more net cleaning value than apple snails. 👍
i bough 5 of these 2 weeks ago and i now i have 7, i have a freshwater tank, so im a little worried
Marissa if they are all true Nerites, it shouldn’t be a problem. However, there are some species than can resemble them...
Can I feed nerite snails algae wafers as their daily diet?
JustLem algae wafers differ from one brand to another. If there is quality brand with a lot of algae in it, that might work, but I suspect the nerites would do better with some live algae to graze on.
Aquarimax The brand is 'Hikari'. Is that brand ok?
JustLem That brand has several types of algae in it, although it has other main ingredients. The first step is to see if your nerite would actually eat it.
Aquarimax ok thanks 😊. Im gonna subcribe cause you are very informative and helpful 👌
they can thrive on 68 temperature?
I have seen them do well even cooler than that
@@Aquarimax Ty man love ir videos
I can't find one of my nerite snails
... do you think crawled out of the tank/ aquarium or buried itself in the sand!?!🤔😭
They have been known to crawl out on occasion
Does they require calcium for their shell.. If yes then how to provide it? And does they poop a lot?
They do need calcium…a small piece of cuttlebone or some crushed coral
Can provide it. They will also pull some from the water.
@@Aquarimax doesn't it change the pH of aquarium water
Can i add this snail to a turtle tank? Althugh would it be reccomended since my turtle has only ever been by himself so would he try to eat the snail??
Jazmin Many turtle species naturally eat snails, so it is likely your turtle would try to eat it sooner or later.
Aquarimax awe okay :( thanks for replying!!
Jazmin you’re welcome! 😊👍
Will they work in a gold fish tank?
Bobby Sauce Yes, I keep some with my goldfish 👍
Thank you I’ll look into it
when I bought my nerite snail I was told they can live in cold water aquariums and they have however you didn't mention this. should I put them in freshwater instead?
Nerites are quite adaptable. I keep several in unheated indoor tanks without problems. You should be fine unless you have a chilled tank.
will fish eat the eggs? say like a gourami or angelfish?
Onfroi some fish will nibble at the eggs. I have never kept gouramies or angelfish specifically with nerites, but i hear Corydoras catfish will eat them, for example. 👍
as pretty as they are, i advise against nerites and wouldnt buy them myself.
(i'm not hating on- or trying to debunk this video. it's good information and well made!)
it really bugs me too see any critter primarily "advertised" as algae eaters or glass cleaners, (suggesting you dont have to, if you dont know better), but with little regard to theyr natural habitat. nerites are adapted to brutal flow, grazing on algae covered rocks right in the rapids of a stream, where most critters cant get to them.
- they dont reproduce unwantedly, because they havent been captive bred sucessfully, which means they are all wild caught, and the problems associated with that.
- the devour actual film algae .. but that means they often starve to death when recommended to beginners with typical "cycling phase algae" (usually green brush and hair), because the snails doesnt like them. - and frustrating to the new hobbyists, because they dont keep his glass spotless, like the guy in the store promised.
Cuda FX All good points to consider! 👍I do have to switch between my tanks occasionally to make sure they get enough algae, and for a beginner with just one tank, that wouldn’t work very well, and could end up with a starving nerite.
Which nerite snail species is the most hardy? Mine die a lot.
wcdeich4 honestly I haven’t noticed a difference in hardiness, but if they get stuck on their backs, they seem to die.
Could i get 2 snails for a 6.6 gallon?Should i quarantine? And can i quarantine in an old small terrarium?
Emily LovesHorses Depending on lighting, bioload, etc, two nerites could do well in a 6.6, as long as there is enough algae to eat. Honestly, I keep 2 or 3 in a tank ten times that big, and they take care of most of the algae, but you might have more light than I do and they could be fine. You could quarantine them in a small container like that, but you will have to change the water daily most likely, (which should be easy) ...just make sure they get enough to eat during quarantine. 👍
I am getting a snail in a few days and i was wondering if they can live with catfish and guppies
Erin Kroef Usually, yes. Guppies will sometimes pick at snails though. Corydpras catfish are usually fine with them. Some loaches (not actually catfish of course) will eat snails.
Do you have a ballpark figure for how many years your personal nerites live? I have one going on three years and I was told they only last for one.
ZeEbstar I think I have had a few reach about 5 years.
Nerites are so cool in my opinion. Im planning on getting two for my ten gal planted setup but do these snails escape if there's no lid on the tank? I have heard some people lost their nerites due to them escaping and drying out
Yes they can deff escape.
I have an 8 gallon tank, is it too small for my nerite? He poops ALL THE TIME though so she must be eating! I also have driftwood in the tank.
Rose it isn’t necessarily small for one nerite, but driftwood will definitely result in a lot of nerite poop. 😊
I have two tiger nerites that are sluggish of late (no pun intended), I found both of them upturned in the tank today (alive) but I feel there's something up with them. There is always a bit of algae on at least one side of the tank and I top up their feed once a week to ensure nutrient levels are being met. The tank is cleaned twice a week at the moment because I was battling with higher ammonia levels but I replace my entire filtration system and gravel clean twice a week. This should be sorted as we are talking two months of this treatment. Any ideas would be great.
Dont clean the fucking tank so much lol
can I have 3 with a single black moor goldfish in a 20 gallon
Danielle Gorham you could do that. You might be okay with one or two...and then add another if you need it
Hi there. I have 1 zebra Nerite snail in a less than 3 gallon tank with 4 enders, 4 marimo moss ball and sand substrate. I have tried feeding my Nerite with cabbage but it does not eat and I have also dropped off the idea of algae wafers as they contain trace amount of copper. May I check can I feed my Nerite with spinach leaf or snail jello bought from aquarium store?
snail jello is worth a shot. Frozen peas with the skins removed have been accepted by mine.
please tell me how you prevent snail escape out of aquarium
spidy278 Generally if the water conditions are good, the snails do not attempt to escape, but I use covers on the aquariums too.
I have a 5 gal with a betta with no lid... Should I get a lid before getting me snail? Also I have pool filtered sand will the 🐌 be okay? :/ Thanks! Hopefully I get a male snail @.@“
Miss Atombomb the pool filter sand should be fine. I would recommend the lid, for the snail and the betta. 👍
Can I keep 2 of them with a betta in a 5 gallon?
Alex Po If your betta is not aggressive towards them, it could work (some bettas ignore snails, a few will kill them). If you want to try it, I would suggest only one at first, to see how the betta does, and to make see how much algae the first nerite takes care of. 👍
Are they dangerous bc i have otos and i want to get a nerite snail it would be ok??
Lucas they wouldn’t harm each other directly, but they would compete for food, so make sure you have plenty of algae, and they’ll be fine.😊👍
Have you ever breed them in brackish water ??
Vickor Gunandar I have seen veligers (larvae) in at least one of my brackish water tanks, and I think I actually have a small metamorphosed nerite that hatched in one of my brackish tanks. I am waiting to catch sight of it again...it is very small, and there is a lot of rockwork in there. If I catch it on film, I will post a video about it on this channel! 👍
i order a horned nerite and it has this huge white spot on it, is this abnormal?
timeout0000 I have seen white patches on nerite shells before, it may indicate the nerite has been kept in water that is too soft and acid. If that is the issue in this case, as long as you keep it in hard, alkaline water, especially with some cuttlebone or aragonite sand, it should be ok.
thanks for the fast reply, that's a relief and luckily i live in a hard water area
Mine are brown and have one bluish white stripe down their shells. The weird thing is that they breed ALL of the time but only grow to a certain size (about 1/2 cm) and then die, though I never run out of them. They eat brown algae and algae wafers but never eat the leaves on my plants. Are they nerites?
Interesting! They don't sound like the nerites I am familiar with. I would love to see a picture of one sometime.
+Aquarimax I'll post one on my Google Plus if you want/can see it. If you can try find It I'll post a video of one for you.
+Neon Tetra Aquarist sounds good! I will watch for it. 👍
Can you tell me if it is true that Nerites cannot right themselves if they flip over on their backs.
Rebecca Coors I have seen some evidence that nerites can get stuck on their backs. I don’t know if they always get stuck, but in think it does happen sometimes. I try to make sure to flip over any nerites I see on their backs. 👍
i have 6 or 7 sea shells i found at the beach will that be ok for calcium
nathan hunt Just one shell should be enough, depending on the size of your setup and number of nerites. A shell might increase the hardness of the water too much in some situations, though.
i have vary soft water so i think it will be alright thanks
Are this good company for goldfish?
Sara Cardenas I have kept them with goldfish for years, and I think they make great goldfish tankmates.. 😊👍
I have 2 nerites, both went inside the operculum, the nitates were a little high not too much... after the water change and checking the parameters ... the water is a little acidic, I added cuttle bone... the bigger started moving and is ok but the smaller has been 4 days inside the operculum... no foul smell... should I keep it inside the tank or out in a cup with water. The operculum is tight closed and it had a whitish slimy substans in the edges... but no foul smell. Help
Mighty Seagoat four days is quite a while. It may have passed away if you haven’t seen any activity that long. Sorry to hear that.
@@Aquarimax 🐌 :'( I put Felix in a small tupper with shallow water. He or she still smells like aquarium water so I still have some hope... little hope
Can they escape from the aquarium if so how can I stop it
Krypto King They will sometimes crawl out of the water. A cover on the aquarium should prevent escapes though. 👍
Do you ever have to swap out there shells? Thanks
a untaken name If I understand your question correctly, you don’t need to swap out the shells. They grow along with the nerites and the nerites can never leave them unless they die.
Should I add another one in my planted ten gallon? Or is one fine
Jim Will It depends greatly on your specific setup. If you feel like one is thriving and you don”t have much excess algae, you’re good to go.
Aquarimax Pets oh ok that makes sense. Yea he or she is def thriving. There’s usually only algae on the glass when it gets near a water change.
Jim Will Sounds like a pretty good balance then!
Will clown loaches eat large nerite snails?
coleman thomas I have kept loaches, and kept nerites, it never together, so I am not sure about that one...
Recently all of my snails claimed up into their shells for many days, and eventually died. I had recently added some meds for my fish so I thought it might have been the copper levels, but I did several water changes, tested the water and bought new snails and they did the exact same thing. Any idea what could be going on with this?
This is generally some irritant in the water, so you seem to be on the right track. The meds may have caused problems with the bacterial population, causing more ammonia in the water, or the snails may still be reacting to small traces of the meds in the water.
These nerite snails are native of what countries in the wild ?
Cute fish A quick search confirms that there are various closely related species spread out in many areas of the world. Some are natives of the Caribbean, others to Southern Africa, etc...
Does they need heater
BIR GORKHALI No, a heater isn’t required, unless your house is very cold. 😊👍
im trying to find info on what veggie is best to feed them with.
I feed mine tomatoes, garlic, apples, they love cucumbers and cantaloupes too as long as it’s not too sugary just make sure if you give them tomatoes get all the seeds out , I kid you not I have tomatoe sprouts growing in my tank , don’t know if they will live long
@@dr.ottooctavius1810 apples?? So basically soft veggies and fruits
@@henrylin6537 actually firm fruits or you’ll have a mess in the water
@@dr.ottooctavius1810 is there any special prep or do you just throw them in? I have 5 nerites in a 10 gallon atm since their 29 gallon needed to be reset. Im currently permanently blue led it atm for moss growth. I much rather not. I havent seen them eat anything besides the glass algae
@@henrylin6537 I make sure what I put in is wash to make sure it’s no pesticides cut up a few pieces of what ever and leave it over night
Are liquid fertilizers such as flourish excel harmful to snails? What about root tabs? In the past when I used liquid fertilizer such as flourish excel they seem to stop moving completely, eventually after water changes they get active again. Please let me know if the liquid or root tabs are safe?
Stop Trolling At the recommended dosage, I have never had trouble with flourish excel bothering snails...I have probably used it with six R more snail species. However, it is possible that some species are more sensitive than others. As for root tabs, I have generally used Jobe's palm spikes, and haven't had any problems with those harming snails either...which species of snails do the fertilizers seem to bother?
Can they breed successfully in brackish water? I have some African cichlids with a sight amount of salt in it
Janssen Garcia Santos With a small amount of salt, they will most likely not breed. 👍
Your cichlids eat snails. You'll thank me later 😉
your cichlids will knock them off the glass or turn them over and eat them. bad idea
Janssen Garcia Santos ffh
How to breed them?
Petro Gonzalo These are challenging to breed...the eggs need seawater or brackish water to hatch, and lots of algae to grow and mature. I have never tired to breed them, though they have hatched for me in a brackish tank, and I had one that began to mature...but has since disappeared.
How many snails can I put into a 2 gallon?
Miss Mittens one nerite should be enough for 2 gallons 👍
Thanks
This might be late but I have one nerite and one smaller snail in a 2.5
HOw can you know when they die to clean up?
If they die, just remove the entire snail with the shell as soon as possible. The longer it stays, the more toxins will be released into the water. 👍
mine immeadiately shut their door after 5 minutes, once i transfer them to my reserved water, they are moving around. please help! I'm losing sleep over these little snails
jw woon is the door opening facing towards the substrate? You may want to do a partial water change in your main tank.
Can nerite snails eat rotting plant matter?
Are black nerite snails the same as these guys?
Gwynnthiere There are a lot of colors /patterns of nerites out there; most have similar care needs, I believe the main differences in care are in temperature tolerances and salinity requirements. If the black nerites are sold in a pet store and acclimated to your local water, their care needs should be the same. 👍
Thank you :) I wanted zebras but they didn't have any and convinced me to buy black ones instead. They seem the same, and she said they're kept in the same sale tank as the zebras. (These are perhaps the cutest snail I have seen I love their little mouths!)
Gwynnthiere sounds like you should be good to go then! They are indeed cute! 👍
I have 5 big snails but I don't know what they are I found them in a lake I mean they're like the size close to of the size of your palm of your hand
Brett Green If you do an image search for apple snails, is that what you have?
No they seem to be bigger than the apple snails
Brett Green Are they bigger than Pomacea gigas/ Pomacea maculata? Here is a link to a picture...this snail is palm-sized: goo.gl/images/FMFNgM
They about the size of a base ball
Brett Green probably Pomacea gigas/maculata then. 👍 Where did you collect them?
Will they crawl out of my tank?
Savage Charles if there are water quality issues, they will sometimes do that. Otherwise they tend to stay in, but a cover is a good idea just in case.
Mine just hangs out on the moss balls and tank glass but never goes out. 🐌
Can I give nerites algae eater pellets?
galaxy star you can try offering them...some may take them. I have found mine will go after skinned, thawed frozen peas.
So if they eat algae should I give them more light so more algae grows? Like 18 or 17 hours a day?
galaxy star It kind of depends on your setup. What is your tank like?
It is a 10 gallon MARINELAND starter kit. It includes a power filter, adjustable filter and led light, it also comes with a cover and a net
galaxy star thanks! If you are only keeping nerites, you can run the light that long, but you
may find it encourages too much algae growth. Usually, there is sufficient algae with 10-12 hours of light. Generally I wouldn't recommend putting the nerites in the tank until you see algae growing on the glass.